Ginger tea is the most evidence-backed drink for relieving nausea, but plain water, clear broth, peppermint tea, and lemon water can also help depending on the cause. What matters almost as much as what you drink is how you drink it: small, frequent sips are far more effective than gulping down a full glass, which can make nausea worse.
Ginger Tea
Ginger has the strongest research behind it of any home remedy for nausea. Its active compounds increase digestive responsiveness and speed up stomach emptying, which directly reduces that queasy feeling. It also has anti-inflammatory properties that help calm the digestive tract. Fresh ginger contains more of the compounds responsible for these effects, while dried ginger is richer in antioxidants.
Most studies find that 1,000 to 1,500 mg of ginger per day, split into multiple doses, works best for treating nausea. That translates to roughly a one-inch piece of fresh ginger steeped in hot water for 10 minutes, drunk two or three times throughout the day. During pregnancy, research supports up to 1 gram per day as safe for morning sickness. The FDA considers up to 4 grams daily safe for the general population, though most people won’t need that much.
One study on chemotherapy patients found that adding 1,000 mg of ginger to standard anti-nausea medications reduced nausea severity scores from 5 out of 10 to 3 out of 10 on days two through five. Ginger isn’t a replacement for prescription anti-nausea drugs in serious situations, but it works well as a complement to them and is highly effective for everyday nausea from motion sickness, pregnancy, or stomach bugs.
Peppermint Tea
Peppermint oil relaxes the smooth muscles in your intestines, which can ease cramping and the nausea that comes with it. Research from 2021 found that peppermint oil may help prevent chemotherapy-related nausea and vomiting, and a 2020 clinical trial showed that even just inhaling peppermint can reduce nausea. Most of these studies looked at concentrated peppermint oil rather than tea, but steeping peppermint leaves in hot water likely provides milder versions of the same benefits.
If you don’t have peppermint tea bags, try placing a drop of peppermint essential oil on a tissue and breathing it in. The scent alone triggers a calming effect on the stomach. Just don’t swallow undiluted peppermint oil, which can irritate your esophagus.
Lemon Water
Lemon works for nausea partly through scent. A randomized clinical trial on pregnant women found that lemon inhalation aromatherapy significantly reduced nausea and vomiting. Squeezing half a lemon into a glass of cool water gives you both the aroma benefit while you sip and mild hydration. The tartness can also cut through that heavy, queasy sensation in a way that plain water sometimes can’t.
Room temperature or cool lemon water tends to be better tolerated than ice-cold water, which can shock an already irritated stomach.
Clear Broth
When nausea has lasted more than a few hours, especially with vomiting, you start losing sodium and other electrolytes. Clear, fat-free broth like chicken bouillon or consommé replaces those losses without introducing fats or complex proteins that your stomach has to work hard to process. The warmth is also soothing and can help relax tense abdominal muscles.
Broth is particularly useful if you haven’t been able to eat. It provides a small amount of calories and salt that can stabilize you enough to start tolerating other foods. Bone broth works too, as long as there’s no visible fat layer on top.
Other Clear Liquids That Help
The Mayo Clinic’s clear liquid recommendations for sensitive stomachs include water (plain, carbonated, or flavored), pulp-free fruit juices like apple or white grape, sports drinks, and tea or coffee without milk or cream. Ice pops without fruit bits or dairy are another option, especially if sipping liquids feels like too much. The cold and the slow melting naturally limit how fast you take in fluid.
Sports drinks can be helpful if you’ve been vomiting, since they contain electrolytes. But many are high in sugar, which can worsen nausea for some people. Diluting them with an equal amount of water is a practical compromise.
The Truth About Carbonated Drinks
Flat ginger ale is a classic nausea remedy, but the evidence is mixed. Carbonation itself can trigger belching, which some people find relieving because it reduces the feeling of pressure in the stomach. However, drinking more than about 300 ml (roughly 10 ounces) of a carbonated beverage can cause gastric distension, stretching the stomach with gas and potentially making nausea worse. Most commercial ginger ales also contain very little actual ginger.
If you want to try carbonation, keep it to a few small sips of plain sparkling water rather than downing a full can of soda. Letting a carbonated drink go partially flat before sipping can give you the mild fizz without the excess gas.
How to Sip When You Feel Sick
The biggest mistake people make when nauseous is drinking too much too fast. A full stomach stretches the gastric wall, which sends signals that amplify nausea rather than calm it. The recommended approach is to take small, frequent sips and gradually increase the amount as your stomach tolerates it.
A practical starting point: take about one teaspoon to one tablespoon of liquid every 5 to 15 minutes. If that stays down comfortably, slowly increase. If you vomit, stop drinking for 30 to 60 minutes to let your stomach settle, then restart with the smallest sips. This protocol is what healthcare guidelines recommend for gastroenteritis, but it applies to any cause of nausea.
Temperature matters too. Very hot and very cold liquids can both irritate a sensitive stomach. Room temperature or slightly cool drinks are generally the easiest to keep down.
What to Avoid Drinking
Milk and dairy-based drinks coat the stomach and are harder to digest, which can intensify nausea. Alcohol is a direct irritant to the stomach lining. Acidic juices like orange or tomato juice can aggravate an already upset digestive system. Coffee stimulates stomach acid production, which is the last thing you need when you’re already nauseous (though plain black coffee in tiny amounts is technically on the clear liquid list for those who tolerate it).
Sugary drinks in large quantities can also pull water into the intestines through osmosis, worsening dehydration if you’re already losing fluids from vomiting.
When Nausea Signals Dehydration
Dehydration itself can cause nausea, creating a frustrating cycle: you feel too sick to drink, and not drinking makes you feel sicker. Warning signs that dehydration is becoming serious include a dry mouth, headache, dizziness, lightheadedness, fatigue, and confusion. In more advanced cases, skin becomes dry and loses its elasticity, breathing gets rapid, and hands and feet may feel cool or look blotchy. If you or someone you’re caring for shows these signs and can’t keep any fluids down, that’s a situation that may need IV fluids in a medical setting.